Beyond Capital: Toward a Theory of Transition

In Beyond Capital, the internationally esteemed Marxist philosopher István Mészáros provides a major contribution to the task of reassessing the socialist alternative and the conditions for its realization in the light of twentieth-century developments and disappointments. Mészáros brings original Marxist thinking to bear on the most fundamental issue facing the left: how to move theoretically Beyond Capital—beyond the project that Marx began and which he articulated under a specific form of commodity capitalism, as well as beyond the power of capital itself.

Steeped in the philosophical roots and revolutionary world outlook of early Marxism, broad in scope and stunning in its erudition, Beyond Capital brilliantly challenges the European-based conceptual framework of socialist theory and begins the urgent task of elaborating a new socialist theory of transition.

Not only profound in its analysis, but also so passionately inspired by sympathy for the downtrodden and their struggle for liberation.

—Daniel Singer, The Nation

For me, István Mészáros is one of the few people who has made essential contributions to the body of Marxist thought. Like Marx, he is not easy to read, but he is definitely worth the effort.

—Michael A. Lebowitz, author, The Socialist Alternative and Build It Now

Hugo Chávez, former president of Venezula, holding the Spanish edition of Beyond Capital by István Mészáros

István Mészáros left his native Hungary after the Soviet invasion of 1956. He is professor emeritus at the University of Sussex, where he held the chair of philosophy for fifteen years. Mészáros is author of Social Structure and Forms of Consciousness, The Structual Crisis of Capital, The Challenge and Burden of Historical Time, and Marx’s Theory of Alienation, among other books.

Description

Paperback, 994 pages ISBN: 0-85345-881-2 Released: January 1995

In Beyond Capital, the internationally esteemed Marxist philosopher István Mészáros provides a major contribution to the task of reassessing the socialist alternative and the conditions for its realization in the light of twentieth-century developments and disappointments. Mészáros brings original Marxist thinking to bear on the most fundamental issue facing the left: how to move theoretically Beyond Capital—beyond the project that Marx began and which he articulated under a specific form of commodity capitalism, as well as beyond the power of capital itself.

Steeped in the philosophical roots and revolutionary world outlook of early Marxism, broad in scope and stunning in its erudition, Beyond Capital brilliantly challenges the European-based conceptual framework of socialist theory and begins the urgent task of elaborating a new socialist theory of transition.

Not only profound in its analysis, but also so passionately inspired by sympathy for the downtrodden and their struggle for liberation.

—Daniel Singer, The Nation

For me, István Mészáros is one of the few people who has made essential contributions to the body of Marxist thought. Like Marx, he is not easy to read, but he is definitely worth the effort.

—Michael A. Lebowitz, author, The Socialist Alternative and Build It Now

Hugo Chávez, former president of Venezula, holding the Spanish edition of Beyond Capital by István Mészáros

István Mészáros left his native Hungary after the Soviet invasion of 1956. He is professor emeritus at the University of Sussex, where he held the chair of philosophy for fifteen years. Mészáros is author of Social Structure and Forms of Consciousness, The Structual Crisis of Capital, The Challenge and Burden of Historical Time, and Marx’s Theory of Alienation, among other books.